These 10 films have critic eager with anticipation

Updated 5:07 am, Sunday, November 18, 2012

Video: Life of Pi (Trailer)

Trailer for Life of Pi

Media: San Francisco Chronicle

If you've been in self-imposed movie hibernation, it's a decent time to emerge from your den.

Studios dump movies in January and at the end of August, but almost never in that sweet spot between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. There may be some bad movies released between now and the end of December, but they're usually pretty easy to detect. If Santa Claus is brandishing a flame thrower on the movie poster, proceed with caution ...

We spent an afternoon looking at movie trailers, and picked the 10 films we're most excited to see over the next month and a half - excluding from contention the indie films on Ruthe Stein's corresponding list. Previews can be deceiving (have you ever noticed how every single Jason Statham movie looks amazing in the trailer?), but we're still confident that this is going to be a better-than-average season. There seem to be fewer sequels than usual, no shortage of smart comedies and new releases by crowd-pleasing quality directors including Ang Lee, Quentin Tarantino and Kathryn Bigelow.

We've included the line from the trailer that sucked us in ("You had me at ...") and the Oscar nominations over/under - the unofficial betting line on how many Academy Award nods each film might receive.

Life of Pi

Photo: Jake Netter, Associated Press

Image 1of/16

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 16

Ang Lee's flm adaptation of the acclaimed Yann Martel book "Life of Pi" opens on November 21.

Ang Lee's flm adaptation of the acclaimed Yann Martel book "Life of Pi" opens on November 21.

Photo: Jake Netter, Associated Press

Image 2 of 16

"Rise of the Guardians," an adventure with Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and other mythical beings battling an evil spirit, opens Nov. 21.

"Rise of the Guardians," an adventure with Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and other mythical beings battling an evil spirit, opens Nov. 21.

Red Dawn (Nov. 21) After a long wait, the remake of the '80s cult film arrives with North Koreans (!), not Russians, invading America. Wolverines!

Red Dawn (Nov. 21) After a long wait, the remake of the '80s cult film arrives with North Koreans (!), not Russians, invading America. Wolverines!

Photo: Open Road Films

Image 12 of 16

Monsters, Inc. 3D (Dec. 19): Pixar rereleases arguably its most underrated movie, the first effort from "Up" director Pete Docter. This time it's in 3-D.

Monsters, Inc. 3D (Dec. 19): Pixar rereleases arguably its most underrated movie, the first effort from "Up" director Pete Docter. This time it's in 3-D.

Photo: HANDOUT

Image 13 of 16

The Impossible (Dec. 21): Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts, vacationing in Thailand, are separated from their children during a tsunami.

The Impossible (Dec. 21): Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts, vacationing in Thailand, are separated from their children during a tsunami.

Photo: Mill Valley Film Festival

Image 14 of 16

Not Fade Away (Dec. 21): "The Sopranos" creator David Chase directs this period piece, about a boy starting a band inspired by the Rolling Stones.

Not Fade Away (Dec. 21): "The Sopranos" creator David Chase directs this period piece, about a boy starting a band inspired by the Rolling Stones.

Photo: Paramount Vantage, Barry Wetcher

Image 15 of 16

Parental Guidance (Dec. 25): Billy Crystal and Bette Midler are old-school grandparents who try to adjust to their daughter's style of parenting.

Parental Guidance (Dec. 25): Billy Crystal and Bette Midler are old-school grandparents who try to adjust to their daughter's style of parenting.

Photo: 20th Century Fox

Image 16 of 16

These 10 films have critic eager with anticipation

1 / 16

Back to Gallery

Opens: Wednesday

You had me at: "When my family chose to move our zoo halfway around the world, that is when my greatest journey began ..."

Oscar nominations over/under: 8

Analysis: A teen is stranded on a lifeboat with a tiger after his parents' ship full of zoo animals capsizes. Seemingly difficult to film because of the complicated construction of Yann Martel's book, but Ang Lee has a history of success with challenging projects. The visual splendor is high - Lee's most lushly filmed project since "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon."

Rise of the Guardians

Opens: Wednesday

You had me at: "As long as they believe in us, we will guard them with our lives."

Over/under: 2 (animated feature and original song)

Analysis: The second trailer looks like an animated remake of "The Avengers," except with imaginary childhood icons instead of Marvel superheroes. (And we say that's a good thing.) Jack Frost, Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny and Sandman are the good guys, fighting an unseen evil. A DreamWorks Animation production.

Killing Them Softly

Opens: Nov. 30

You had me at:"I'm living in America, and in America you're on your own."

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Opens: Dec. 14

You had me at:"A dark power has found a way back into the world!"

Over/under: 8.5

Analysis: Tolkien's novel has been split into three movies, helmed by "Lord of the Rings" director Peter Jackson after Guillermo del Toro had to drop out. The first one is heavy with dwarfs, while Martin Freeman takes over from Ian Holm as young Bilbo Baggins. Gandalf, Galadriel and others from the "Rings" films return. New creatures and old are featured, although we may have to wait one more film for the dragon Smaug to take center stage.

Zero Dark Thirty

Opens: Dec. 19

You had me at: "I'm bad news. I'm not your friend. I'm not going to help you. I'm going to break you. Any questions?"

Over/under: 6.5

Analysis: Kathryn Bigelow's follow-up to best picture Academy Award winner "The Hurt Locker" is a military thriller based on the search for Osama bin Laden. Jessica Chastain and Jason Clarke are the CIA officers. Joel Edgerton and Chris Pratt are among the members of SEAL Team Six. We all know how it ends, but Bigelow should milk cinematic suspense from the setup.

The Guilt Trip

Opens: Dec. 19

You had me at: "My penis could literally grow an eyeball and I would not tell you about it."

Over/under: 0.5

Analysis: Seth Rogen and Barbra Streisand are son and mother, improving their difficult communication on a cross-country road trip. Their chemistry appears strong, and the trailer is very funny. Streisand looks as if she's having as much fun as she did in the "Focker" movies, with a more multidimensional character.

Jack Reacher

Opens: Dec. 21

You had me at: "I've got nothing to lose. And if you're smart, that scares you."

Over/under: 1 (If we had to guess, best sound editing.)

Analysis: Tom Cruise tries to squeeze into the "Bourne Identity"/"Taken" market with a new super-badass trained-killer franchise. "Reacher" promises a little more comedy than Matt Damon or Liam Neeson typically offer in their vehicles. As a matter of fact, based on the trailer, we're not 100 percent certain this isn't a sequel to "Knight and Day."

This Is 40

Opens: Dec. 21

You had me at: "It doesn't seem like our lives should be this much work."

Analysis: Judd Apatow directs this quasi-sequel to "Knocked Up," with the Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann characters struggling with their marriage. Apatow's wife and two children make up three-quarters of the movie family, supporting the theory that this is basically autobiography. Albert Brooks and John Lithgow are grandfathers. This looks more straightforward than Apatow's last comedy, "Funny People."

Django Unchained

Opens: Dec. 25

You had me at: "In my world, you've got to get dirty. So that's what I'm doing. Getting dirty."